{"id":302671,"date":"2025-07-30T01:38:15","date_gmt":"2025-07-30T01:38:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/302671\/"},"modified":"2025-07-30T01:38:15","modified_gmt":"2025-07-30T01:38:15","slug":"goblinsmoker-the-kings-eternal-throne-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/302671\/","title":{"rendered":"Goblinsmoker – The King’s Eternal Throne Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

By: Nameless_n00b_602<\/p>\n

\"\"Concept albums inherently have higher aspirations than the average release and therefore necessitate an elevated standard of critique. Not only must the music delight, but everything on the album\u2014lyrics, instruments, tone, track placement, pace\u2014must support a well-developed central narrative. Enter Goblinsmoker<\/strong>. This Durham, UK, duo tells the legend of the exiled Toad King, who inhales the fumes of his willingly self-immolating subjects for\u2026reasons. The first two installments of this trilogy, Toad King and A Throne in Haze, a World Ablaze<\/a>, recount the establishment of the goblin army and subsequent annihilation of the ruling toad kingdom. Goblinsmoker<\/strong> now concludes the story with The King\u2019s Eternal Throne. Breathe in and join the king\u2019s court.<\/p>\n

The King\u2019s Eternal Throne is an album of two halves. From \u201cShamanic Rites\u201d through the midpoint of \u201cBurn Him,\u201d Goblinsmoker<\/strong> hauls you face-first through Conan<\/strong>\u2019s prehistoric tar pits. Vocals are sparse, and riffs drag their knuckles and rattle teeth. Vitriolic like Thou<\/strong> or Come to Grief<\/strong>, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Adam Kennedy rasps that not all is well in the kingdom (\u201cShamanic Rites\u201d). The Shaman, having manipulated the Toad King to achieve his goal of toadal destruction, now seeks to eliminate the pawn. Drummer Michael Guthrie embodies the Shaman\u2019s contempt for the Toad King with lurching, powerful kit work, and Kennedy, deftly wielding strings and vocals, manifests both the cold, insurrectionist plotting of \u201cShamanic Rites\u201d and the searing violence of \u201cBurn Him.\u201d On the latter, Guthrie viciously punctuates his bandmate\u2019s vocal attacks with snares and cymbals, fanning the flames of goblin fervor. Meanwhile, Kennedy\u2019s guitar and bass march inexorably toward the pyre, dragging the King like a caveman drags dead game.<\/p>\n

\ufeffThe King\u2019s Eternal Throne by Goblinsmoker<\/a><\/p>\n

Then the Toad King burns, and everything changes. Backs straighten, eyes look skyward, and at the 6:00 mark of \u201cBurn Him,\u201d Goblinsmoker<\/strong> evolves from Bongripper<\/strong> to Truckfighters.<\/strong> As flames consume the Toad King, an upbeat lead and energetic fill give way to the greatest bass hook I have ever heard. The Shaman calls, his goblins respond, and they dance rapturously in this hazy Valley of the Sun<\/strong>. Where the Toad King once ruled only as a panacea for misanthropy, the Shaman reigns exultant, evinced by prime musical synergy. A suitably psychedelic bass solo chronicles the Shaman\u2019s first taste of power as he takes \u201cThe King\u2019s Eternal Throne\u201d and inhales the sacred smoke. Kennedy\u2019s funky axe work dispels the darkness of the Toad King\u2019s rule, cruising through the Goblin Forest to spread the good news. Guthrie drives these tidings, bumping and grooving with the boom-bap sensibility of golden age hip hop. This combination creates a sound at once nostalgic, swaggering, and as infinite as the new goblin kingdom.<\/p>\n

My qualms feel like nitpicks in the face of a tale so well told. Clocking in at 30 minutes, The King\u2019s Eternal Throne is short, especially for a doom record. Even with three tracks exceeding eight minutes, it\u2019s easily digestible and doesn\u2019t overstay its welcome, but it could still benefit from some trimming. Fade-ins and fadeouts can linger, which is expected for the genre and isn\u2019t too bothersome on a casual listen, but repeated spins find me impatient for the next chapter to begin. Closer \u201cToad King (Forest Synth Offering)\u201d is a rework of the eponymous track from Goblinsmoker<\/strong>\u2019s debut, and while it\u2019s good dungeon forest synth, it has no narrative value. It\u2019s a decent enough palate cleanser after inhaling the fumes of so many burning bodies, but it ultimately weakens the impact of the should-be closer \u201cThe King\u2019s Eternal Throne.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Writing a successful concept album\u2014and the conclusion of a concept trilogy\u2014is no easy feat, but Kennedy and Guthrie are up to the task. From the brooding riffage of \u201cShamanic Rites\u201d to the triumphant groove of the title track, Goblinsmoker<\/strong> handles storytelling, tonal shifts, and musical evolutions with aplomb. The only things keeping this album from a coveted 4.0 are minor but tough to ignore. Luckily, those quibbles can be resolved with little more than a hacksaw and some glue. I\u2019m not sure where their path leads from here, but with The King\u2019s Eternal Throne, Goblinsmoker<\/strong> puts to rest the legend of the Toad King and any doubts they could tell it.<\/p>\n

Rating:<\/strong> 3.5\/5.0
DR:<\/strong> 6 | Format Reviewed:<\/strong> 320 kb\/s mp3
Label:<\/strong> APF Records<\/a>
Websites:<\/strong> Bandcamp<\/a> | Instagram<\/a> | Facebook<\/a>
Releases Worldwide:<\/strong> July 25th, 2025<\/p>\n

\n\tGive in to Your Anger:\n<\/p>\n